


The Wayward Wanderer

by vysteria



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Angst, F/F, F/M, FFXIV writing contest 2020, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Language, No real plot here, Slice of Life, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Tumblr: FFXIVwrite2020, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:12:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 14,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26350165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vysteria/pseuds/vysteria
Summary: For FFXIV Write 2020! The first entry of that challenge was done elsewhere and isn't applicable to this.Welcome to The Wayward Wanderer, where shenanigans go down, romance blooms, and life happens. Nestled in the heart of Kugane as a homage to Ishgard (and a way to stand out), we follow the lives and doings of Jun Trueblade, Yulia Tamorlin, Ezra Blackthorne, Freya Inlustris, and Ninian Inoue.
Relationships: OC/OC, just my friends characters being cute you know
Kudos: 5





	1. Sway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I don't know what I'm doing with this, so I guess we're on this ride together!
> 
> This was spawned because various members of the FC I'm in bought the new Dirndl's outfit, and that bodice sure looks like a barmaid outfit. Thus, this au was suggested.
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and please look forward to more!

Ripping off the banner from the painted letters on the front of the building, Jun Trueblade stood and marveled at the glyphs glinting in the Hingan sun. _The Wayward Wanderer,_ a tribute to an inn she had very much enjoyed while in the Holy See of Ishgard , and also a transplant to her own homeland with the Ishgardian sensibilities of color and the slanted lines and sloping wood of... _home._

Another Ishgardian sensibility, in terms of dress, was already turning eyes among the passerby of Kugane. Short, tight sleeves, with a corset that pushed the bust up through the scoop neckline, it was everything Kugane _didn’t_ do in terms of fashion. 

“I think we’re in business,” she said to herself, crossing muscled arms over her chest. “Just need some employees...” 

*** 

Why this dignified, polite, reserved, and _cute_ dragon girl would want a job here was beyond Jun. 

But what Ninian Inoue wanted, she always got. Particularly when she asked so nicely with such a perfect bow. 

While Jun operated behind the bar, she helped to serve the drinks and clean tables. At one point, she needed a stool built to help her reach certain nooks to dust and polish. While Jun still served the ale and mead popular in Coerthas and it was quickly becoming a selling point to the bar, Ninian slowly wheedled her way into incorporating sake and different cocktails into the menu. 

_Shit, they would need a bartender._

***

Did Jun expect a familiar sight in a fellow hyur woman who could deck a man for saying the wrong thing? No, but here Ezra Blackthorne stood with blue hair, glasses, and a determination to go behind the bar. 

Even better that she clicked instantly with Ninian, as most seemed to do, and became the threatening presence to drive away patrons who had untoward thoughts. Her fiance Rae’leon also became a staple presence, ordering drinks while adopting the jovial persona the dark walls needed. 

*** 

Freya Inlustris was only supposed to be a temporary employee for the busy season in Kugane. Yet another Au Ra woman from the Steppe, she was still learning how to articulate herself in the common tongue of Eorzea. Unfortunately, her continued misunderstandings led to botched orders or frustration on the part of the waitress herself. 

To Jun’s surprise, it was quickly becoming part of her charm, and she was developing something of a fan club within specific circles of the port. 

She never left. Jun never asked her to. 

*** 

One day, Freya brought in a new customer into the bar for the experience. Their first introduction to Yulia Tamorlin whacking her head on the doorframe. 

After that, the tall elezen woman just always came back and became a fixture of the bar, making friends with Ezra and Rae’leon. One offhand comment about the menu drew Yulia’s attention to something very much lacking in the establishment, and with a deep flush, asked to speak to the management. 

“Why don’t you serve food?” 

After that, the rest was history. 

*** 

“Welcome to The Wayward Wanderer! How may we serve you?” 

Ezra was already cleaning glasses in between refilling for customers halfway into their cups, with Ninian chatting with a customer and his daughter. Freya was in the process of delivering a tankard and running the tray back for more. 

Jun, at this point, no longer needed to man the bar and instead spent her days in the back office. She could make adjustments to the menu from there, along with counting inventory, completing orders, and tabulating numbers. There was no real door to the office itself, so it shared a wall and a view into the kitchen. Yulia juggled five different orders with a grace that seemed to evaporate every time she was asked to hold a tray. 

The bustle and chatter of the building brought a smile to Jun’s face, grateful she’d been persuaded time and again to bring others into this rather than doing it alone. At last, something more like home. 


	2. Muster

“Oh dear, it really is coming down out there,”  Ninian mused as she propped a hand under her chin, watching the sheets of rain through the window. “We should put some wood in the fireplace.”

“ Yulia should be having some wood in the kitchen,” Freya murmured, swiping a cloth over a tabletop and collecting a tub full of glassware. “Maybe to ask her?”

“Oh, you’re too right! I’ll be right back!”  Ninian collected herself and skipped to the back as the bell rang at the door, signaling the entry of another customer.

Ezra looked up from the bottles she was setting on the back wall. “Welcome to The Wayward Wanderer. Grab a seat wherever!”

The individual making their way looked familiar, at least to Freya and Ezra. The same dark hood that shielded the face from prying eyes, a twitching under the cloak that gave away the tail characteristic of  miqo’te . This man had been a regular over the past two weeks, sitting in the same corner table by a window.

“Hello,” Freya said brusquely as she set a wooden tablet engraved with their menu. “How are you having?”

“Oh!” Though he was startled, his voice barely raised over hers. “I was expecting-”

“Expecting, yes yes. How are you having?”

He didn’t even appear to look at the menu, stammering his way through words until finally he blurted out, “Water and fish with fried popotos?”

“Yes, I will  coming with that soon.” Strolling off to behind the bar, where a glassless window opened to the kitchen, she jabbed a thumb back to the table. “Water, fried fish with... popotos ? Yes.”

Yulia came to the window and glanced out before grinning at Ezra. “It’s him.”

“Sure is. Did he bungle the order again?” The  hyur woman was already halfway through pouring a glass of water.

Freya sighed and shook her head. “I not knowing why he sits there. That is being  _ my _ section, not hers.”

“Five  gil he spills his water all over himself when he sees her.”

Yulia chuckled. “Ten  gil he chokes on his food. I’ll get started on the fish and  popotos now, I think we had a fresh catch? Jun!” She was walking back into the kitchen, picking out three  popotos and a bucket of water.

“The catch is in the back, did you want me to get it?”

“You’re stronger than I am. If you don’t mind.” Jun’s nod was rewarded with a warm smile. “Also, he’s back.”

“Who’s back?”

“You know who. We’ve got  gil running on what’s going to happen when  Ninian goes out there with the wood.” After washing and peeling the  popotos , she waited for the fish to be retrieved, then gutting, deboning, and scaling it with ease along with removing its head with one vicious  _ thunk _ _. _ Tossing the fish in breading and dropping both into different pans of oil, she poked at Jun’s shoulder after wiping her hands clean. “One would think you’d know more about what’s going on around here. Don’t you own the place?”

“I don’t know as much gossip as what flows in  _ your _ kitchen,” Jun retorted with a smile. “Isn’t that your trade?”

After a few moments and turns of the fish,  Yulia quickly placed it and the piping  popotos on a plate and brought it to the window. She jerked her head to Jun. “Come on, watch what happens. Hey Freya, one order of fish and popotos!”

“I am come, I am come now,” Freya chanted as she dashed to the window and yanked away the plate. In moments, she dropped the plate and glass of water in front of the hooded man. “Here you being. Enjoy.”

Right as he was taking a bite of fish,  Ninian emerged from the side with a mat of a few logs on a mat, dragging behind her. Her smile was glowing, both from her natural disposition and the moisture of the air as she prepped the hearth with kindling and a log. Before she could ask for help, a yelp from the table drew the attention of the entire bar.

Yulia winced. He’d bitten the fork itself, a sensation not easily forgotten once experienced. Shaking off the shivers, she just turned back into the kitchen. “Don’t think he’s ever going to do it, and she’s never going to figure it out. What a cute little love story.”

“What if they do?”

She looked back at Jun, her expression not wavering. “It’s still a cute love story.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another dumb idea that was had. This is gonna be a collection of dumb ideas.
> 
> That dude straight up Clannad up in here is another dear friend. XD
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! Please look forward to more!


	3. Clinch

“Oh, this uniform is very...”

“Pretty?” Ninian guessed.

“Colorful,” Freya asserted.

“Feminine?” Ezra suggested.

Yulia frowned and shook her head. “... _ Tight _ . Are all things for women like this? It is not comfortable to me.”

“I suppose that’s true,”  Ninian mused, walking in a slow circle around the taller woman. While  Ninian and Freya had the smaller waists, Ezra and Jun the more muscled arms,  Yulia was just... _ long _ . Granted, most of her attire was culinarian gear with aprons and skirts, but the day before had assented to Ninian taking her measurements.

Jun took a small issue with it, saying something about not having  Yulia wait on tables for the sake of the glassware, but  Ninian’s stubborn streak ran  _ deep. _ The bar had an  _ aesthetic  _ to maintain, after all. If a customer asked to see the cook, they couldn’t very well have the cook look like...well, like  _ that. _

So they made a deal. If Jun didn’t approve of the change and  Yulia couldn’t cook in it, then the outfit change didn’t need to happen. However,  Ninian rarely made deals she couldn’t come through on.

Freya was also integral to insights about the  elezen , having been friends with her for years, dating back to when  Yulia first left her  duskwight den in the Shroud. The biggest one being the color: blue.

“You just stay right there. I think you look amazing, but it’s not really up to me. I’ll go fetch Miss  Trueblade , give me just a moment.” In only two breaths,  Ninian rounded the corner with Jun in tow. “See? Doesn’t she look good with our uniform?”

Ezra and Freya both nodded behind Yulia. “It’s a waste of her figure not to.”

“Hey!”

“It’s a compliment!”

“You looking very pretty,” Freya agreed. “The short skirt very flatter, we should being keeping that for you.”

Jun’s ears and cheeks took on a darker dusting on her brown skin. She glared down at  Ninian . “Fine, fine, you  _ win. _ I’m leaving now.” Turning right on her heel, she stalked back to the office.

Yulia cocked her head to the side in confusion. “Is something wrong?”

The grin on  Ninian’s face took on a decidedly cat-like tone of mischief. “Oh no, quite the contrary.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehehehe.
> 
> Freya's supposed to be the gremlin. Ninian secretly the mastermind, I suppose.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed, and please look forward to more!


	4. Matter of Fact

Small.

Chaotic.

No, none of those words were quite right for Freya  Inlustris .  _ Straightforward.  _ That was better, particularly with people she didn’t know or who were giving her a hard time.

“How are you having?”

The very proper and well to-do  Hingan couple looked at each other and the wife giggled behind her wide sleeve. Her husband merely glanced at Freya, and if looking down at a person standing above you was possible, he was at least making a good attempt. “How are you doing, or what are you having?”

Freya’s brow creased with a slight scowl. “How are you having.”

“That isn’t proper grammar, miss. I don’t understand what you’re saying. Could you try again?”

She crossed her arms across her chest. “You are being mocking me.”

He raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Could you be  clearer ?”

A muscle in her jaw twitched and held taut. Before she could open her mouth and give him a  _ very _ clear whatfor, a firm but gentle hand rested on her shoulder. Looking up, she couldn’t quite see Ezra’s eyes beyond the glare over her glasses’ lenses. The ice-cold smile, however, was very familiar.

This was usually the smile she wore right before she would throw a customer out.

“Is there a problem here?”

“Our apologies, but we can’t understand our waitress and we would like to request a new one. Perhaps that one over there.” He gestured to  Ninian , who was delivering plates of food to a table and bowing.

“I am being speaking clearly, Ezra.” Freya looked up to her. “I am being trying my best.”

Ezra merely patted her shoulder, the heavy warmth a comfort and soothing the bubbling wrath in her chest. “I know you are. I’m going to have to ask you two to leave. We don’t tolerate customers treating our staff this way.”

“What?” he spluttered, outraged. “I demand to speak to your management immediately! I haven’t been treated thus in all my time in Kugane!”

Ezra’s smile took on a new predatory light. “Oh, you’d like to speak to management? You  _ sure _ about that? I promise you, I’m being nice.”

“I  _ demand _ it!”

“Oi, boss!” Ezra called, gently steering Freya away, blocking her body from view of the couple. “Got someone demanding to see management.”

Everything in the bar stopped, from the clinking of cutlery to the bustling in the kitchen.  Yulia turned from the stove and various tables as she heard a book being closed and set down. Heavy footfalls preceded her entrance to the main floor, but the cloud of menace followed Jun in. When she stopped at the table, she crossed her arms and looked down at the gentleman at the table. “Oh? And why am I being asked for?”

“Your waitress is--”

“They’re complaining about how Freya talks, and looked like they were making fun of her.”

“Well, she’s--”

“ _ My _ employee, and we look after our staff.” Jun’s voice lowered to a harsh, quiet tone. “You can get out now before I throw you out myself.”

This time, he grabbed his wife’s sleeve as they stumbled out of the building, saying something about reporting them and that his family would be hearing about this. A few moments of silence followed before the natural noise and chatter resumed. Ezra gently steered Freya towards the kitchen with Jun following behind.

Yulia and  Ninian were already waiting, the  elezen with a sweet and  Ninian a cup of tea. “The nerve of them,”  Ninian tsked, pressing the cup into Freya’s hands.

“Oh, they won’t be coming back any time soon,” Ezra chuckled, patting Freya on the shoulder.

Yulia tucked the wrapped sweet into Freya’s dress pocket and pecked her on the cheek. “People like that always treat others the way they feel about themselves. I bet they live miserable lives and just felt like taking it out on you. We treasure you just the way you are.”

Freya nodded, not able to speak, the tears locking in her throat. Not tears of anger or sorrow, but of gratitude.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Freya's manner of speech is something that I'm constantly trying to perfect and get right, since I'm borrowing all of these characters but one (with permission, of course). I have been informed it is correct, and I think she's charming as shit.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed, and please look forward to more!


	5. Nonagenarian

One day a month,  _ The Wayward Wanderer _ set aside a shift solely to cater to the elderly of  Kugane . It was a time that the chatter was soft, the music quiet and meditative, and the food easier on the jaws. Last month,  Yulia had concocted a sweet pudding for the menu. This time, she had informed Jun of a new art she was mastering from a chef near the  Bokairo Inn.

“It’s called a raindrop cake!” she said, handing a small and delicate plate to Jun. A small cake with the top half jiggling much like a drop of water on a leaf stood on the pottery. With a small spouted pot, she poured a light syrup that coated the clear aspect in a tinted blue, highlighting the sweets within it sculpted like cherry blossom petals. “It’s considered an old art form, and it’s easy to eat because it just melts in the mouth. I thought we could do it for Elder’s Day.”

“That’s not a bad idea at all. Does it take long for you to make these?”

Yulia shrugged. “I’ve been practicing in my free time, and with the business we’ve gotten in the past, I think I’ll be able to manage just fine. With your approval, that is.”

That stupid beaming smile was impossible not to mirror. “Then you have it. Honestly, it’s easier leaving the food to you and the bar to Ezra. It means we have more time to do things like this.”

“Then I’ll get started right away. Leave it to me!” In a blink,  Yulia was already tying on an apron and bringing jars and bags down from the shelves, along with bowls and spoons. One specific jar held the gelatin that would make the cake’s look possible.

This day was easiest on the entire staff. Ezra generally reached for sake or finer vintages, Freya would lend an ear to listen to stories decades old, and  Ninian would help customers to walk to their tables and out the door when they were finished.  Yulia , however, was the busiest from the moment they opened their doors. In each cake a design was sculpted to be encased within the ‘raindrop’ of the cake. Blossoms, snowflakes, flames, still waters, rock gardens, no design was too much to handle.

It wasn’t until the end of the day that  Yulia received an unusual request for the cake. “She would like a cat, snow white, curled up like its sleeping,”  Ninian said from the back window from the bar. “Last order for right now, I think.”

Yulia nodded and turned her focus to the cake. Shaping the base was no issue, coloring it a soft blue-green. Sculpting the cat, too, wasn’t a problem. Most cats were round, especially when curled up, fluid little puffballs that they were. She liked the cats she’d met, and the strange noise they made when they were happy. Jun called it ‘purring’. This cat in the cake was sleeping in gentle repose, surrounded by small piped violets and curling leaves. The bubble of the drop finished it off, and she whipped up the syrup, colored a light violet and sweetened.

When calling out the order and seeing that  Ninian was busy,  Yulia looked among the tables and spied an old woman sitting by herself with a cup of hot tea in front of her. Resolving  _ not _ to drop this dish, she took it out and gently set it down in front of the lady. “As  requested . My apologies, your waitress is popular and was busy.”

“Ah, you must be the one who made it, then.” Her words were soft and slow, but held much the same speech pattern as Ninian: refined, well-spoken, and deliberate. “And you captured her so well.”

“Your cat?”

“Her name was Yuki, I had her when she was a kitten for her entire life. A sweet thing, truly, and I do miss her. This looks too good to eat.”

Yulia smiled and slid into the seat across from her, pouring the syrup over the cake. “All sweets should be so, but they’re meant to be eaten or they’re wasted in their purpose.”

The old woman looked up at her and took one of her hands, patting it. “You’re a good soul, you try very hard, don’t you? You don’t look like you’re from here.”

“Oh, I’m not. I’m from Eorzea, deep in the Black Shroud.”

“What brought you here?”

“I followed a friend. Everyone here has been kind, and it’s a nice place to just... _ be.” _

She chuckled. “Your mouth says one thing, child, and your hands say another. Some may be kind, but others perhaps not, and life certainly hasn’t been. I can tell, you can’t fool this old woman. Why would you stay?”

Yulia’s smile slipped, just a little. “If it is as you say, madam, then where else can I go? This place is a new home to me, or close to it. I’d like to keep going down that way.”

“Someone else, then?”

She jerked her hands out of the woman’s hold. “Why would you say that?”

“The way you said that, it felt the same way I felt about Yuki, and others I’ve cared for. Your home is where your heart makes it so, and if that’s true, then I am happy for you. You have sadness in your eyes, child. Make them full of happiness.”

Yulia took the small spoon that came with the plate and placed it in her hands. “I promise, I will.” She stood, bowed, and left the table. As she passed by the bar, Ezra spied the sparkle of a tear on her cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's my baby, Yulia, the lil duskie with a hell of a backstory. Maybe it can be expanded upon, like other backstories. We'll see!
> 
> This prompt was a CHALLENGE, and I approve! I hope you guys do, too!
> 
> Please look forward to more!


	6. Lush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick note: in order to make this chapter work (because I like the idea of what's about to transpire), one adjustment needed to be made to Chapter One for continuity purposes. Oh, the troubles of not outlining anything and just pants-ing all of this.

The first package that arrived at the door of _The Wayward Wanderer_ was approached with some suspicion. They didn't often get deliveries that amounted to something other than a food or alcohol shipment, courtesy of Hancock (of course). When they _did,_ Ezra had a standard protocol. With some hesitation, she produced her smithing tongs and delicately removed the package from the ground and brought it to the back in case it was something unsavory. Yulia was already prepared with her conjury in case some hurt came from the little box.

"You two look really funny like this, you'd think the box was about to explode," Jun laughed, leaning on the doorframe.

"Oh yeah?" Ezra shot back. "Then why are you standing yalms back like that? Not very adventurer-like of you." Carefully, she set the tongs aside and poked it with her rapier.

"I'm semi-retired."

"Semi-retired, _right_. You never did explain why someone in her prime would be 'semi-retired'." Confident that the box wouldn't blow up in her face if jostled or with the wrapping tampered with, she brought it to a tabletop to examine the writing. "Doesn't make a lot of sense to me, really. You could make more money doing that, if that was the goal."

Jun shrugged. "I felt like coming home."

"Bullshite." Yulia flinched at the swear, and Ezra patted her on the hand. "Sorry, Yulia. Sometimes it just..."

"You're fine, and it really isn't. Jun retired because--"

"What's in the box, Ezra?" Jun interrupted, coming in closer. "I don't recognize the writing."

Ezra turned the box over and over. "I can't open it, it's not for us. It's for Ninian, from 'a secret admirer'." The grin on her face looked to split her cheeks in two. "Secret, he says. I wish all secret admirers were this subtle."

"But he's not being subtle," Yulia countered, blinking.

"That's...that's what I mean, he's being as subtle as a smithing anvil to the head. I was being sarcastic." She ruffled the elezen's hair. "Do you know where Ninian is?"

"She was helping me prepare the tea leaves for today, the new shipment from Ishgard always takes a little while to do and she's so good at it. She should be in the kitchen still, I shall go and fetch her!"

As Yulia bounced off to find the Au Ra, Ezra's side-eye to Jun could melt stone. "You're not that subtle, either. You're lucky she's as dumb as she's cute, or she would have picked up on this shite by now."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Did you retire because of something that happened and she was around?" Jun didn't react physically to a lot of things, but that flinch told more of a story than any words could. Ezra sighed. "Sorry, didn't mean to dig up bad memories. Whatever it was, it couldn't have been that bad, right? Everything's fine now."

"You'd think that, wouldn't you," Jun muttered. "I don't want to talk about it."

Before Ezra could open her mouth to apologize further, Yulia came out with Ninian all a-chatter. Both women were wearing matching outfits of sky blue with extra ruffle in the skirt for the tea aesthetic of the day. Which was to say, Ninian had been fully unleashed on Yulia's wardrobe with ribbons and proved a deft hand with a needle and thread. "Yulia says there's a box for me?"

"From a secret admirer," Ezra teased, holding it out to her. "Should be fine, though. I gave it my rigorous testing."

Ninian laughed, and began to carefully remove the wrapping. Her breath caught in a gasp as she saw the contents. "Oh my word, this is...I haven't seen these in so long." Within her hands was a box of apricots, lush and fully ripe. Their tint spoke to the careful crossbreeding and tending required in their rearing, all one dozen of them. "We don't know who sent this?"

Yulia and Ezra laughed while Jun cracked a smile. "Maybe, maybe not. It's a secret admirer."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, back with another update! Still no plot, who needs that?
> 
> Hopefully you enjoyed this one, and if you did, please look forward to more!


	7. Avail

"Madam, if you please... _hold still._ "

Yulia fidgeted in the chair. "I'm sorry, it's just that it itches my ears."

Jandelaine tsked above her, his shears working at a blinding rate. "A common observation among elezen and miqo'te clients, I'm afraid. There's not much to be done about it, but rest assured! I shall brush away the excess, 'tis but a temporary discomfort."

She looked up at Freya. "Is there a reason we have to do this?"

"What use a man like this if you no call," she said with a grumpy _hmph._ "You no cut for...many summer, Yulia."

"Because I don't need to. That's what ties are for."

Ezra sat beside the dragon girl. "Oho, a haircut? I see. It's already looking so cute." She winked as Yulia blushed. "You'll be so popular, we might have to make Freya cook."

"I no want," Freya replied flatly. "She better."

"It was a joke, I promise. You two are best suited where you are. Any reason for the change?"

Yulia pointed at Freya, then put her hands back in her lap when Jandelaine protested. "She _made_ me. She says it's been too long."

"But if you let it grow too long between appointments, the ends will dry up and become a nest for adders!" he lamented, measuring out lock length with his fingers. "We cannot have that! Your fair little friend here was right to force you to summon me, what a disaster it would have been if you had been permitted to live in shame like this even a moment longer!"

Yulia's glare towards Freya could have stripped varnish.

"Think of how many male heads you'll turn with with this! Why, I dare say their necks might snap!"

Ezra laughed. "Oh, it won't be men's necks snapping."

"Oho?" Jandelaine finalized curls with a serum. "Perhaps a lady, then?"

"Perhaps. That does look so nice."

"How much do I need to send you so you can leave?" Yulia grumbled.

"You wound me, fair one!" He slapped his chest, miming a bolt to the heart. "It is ever a fixed price of two thousand gil for you. Please call upon me again, this style requires maintenance! See to it she does not forget!"

Freya smiled a gremlin's smile. "Oh, I being _very_ sure to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've wanted to do that for a loooooooooooooooooooooooong time.


	8. Ultracepidarian

The kitchen was closed, the bar nearly done for the night. All four women were gathered at the 'top to share a drink with Ezra and Rae'leon, if only to decompress from another busy day. Ninian enjoyed a a sweet rolanberry cordial, while Freya sipped on hot tea. Rae'leon, Yulia, and Jun shared an identical order in mead, made with birch syrup from Ishgard. A heady concoction and one to be enjoyed sparingly, lest one end up face-down on the ground an hour later drooling into the wooden floor.

"-and you should have seen it, Freya was amazing! The en avante was so graceful, I'm sure the Ruby Princess was almost seduced!" Yulia crowed, ruffling the smaller dragon woman's hair vigorously.

"Being too loud. You no bad too, you keep us alive. What she not tell, I en avante to the edge once somewhere, she rescue me to other side before I blink." With her cup empty, she slid it across to Ezra, who began preparations for another one. "You stitching us up always, but when she has a stick and no cane." Freya shivered. "Things go booming."

"Black magic and white magic aren't that different. They're really close to each other, actually. You can kill with white magic just as easily as you can save with black," Yulia chuckled, sipping her mead.

"How that? Black go boom, white go heal. Black hurt, white fix hurt." Freya nodded to herself. "Yes, that is way."

Yulia set her mug down, looking down at Freya with a puzzled expression. Glancing to the teapot, sitting in the same place for the last ten minutes with tea slowly growing lukewarm, she reached for the base of the ceramic. Whispering a short incantation, her fingers glowed as they brushed against the glazed black pottery, feeling it grow warm underneath the tips. When she withdrew, steam rose in a slow curl from the spout. "You're wrong about that. Magic is the same as a sword," she muttered. "If you use it with ill intent, it will always hurt. Black, white, red, blue, it's all the same. You can use it to cure ills or cause them."  
  
  


Everyone at the bar fell silent, the mood reflecting the words sinking into the air. Freya nudged Yulia with her shoulder just a bit, like a cat bumping its head on a hand in apology. "I no mean bad thing. Sorry. Still learn magic things, I not knowing. Please forgive?"  
  


Yulia's green eyes smiled with the rest of her face as she ruffled her hair, this time more gentle and affectionate. "Of course. I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have been like that."

"But you knowing more than me, you knowing all magics, no?"

"Doesn't mean everything gets shot down _all_ the time. Besides, everyone's got things they're good at." Yulia's bright smile returned, and the room seemed to sigh in relief in response, the mood relaxed. "Magic is probably the realm I should stick with anyway. Remember the last time I held a lance?"

Jun groaned into her drink. "You were getting stabbed _repeatedly_ by an enemy and _you didn't even notice._ "

Yulia dismissed it with a wave of her hand. "Psh, I was fine. Nothing a little magic couldn't fix later."

Rae'leon laughed and finished his own drink, his ears twitching with mirth. "Oh? And what happened after?"

Yulia pouted. "Jun took away my lance." The resounding laughter and jovial atmosphere, fully recovered from the brief interlude, continued and echoed long into the night as the candles and hearth burned low.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that this prompt title was even a word? I sure didn't.
> 
> This wasn't an easy one to think of, I had to use all one and a half braincells I have for this. Hopefully it's a good one. I like to think Freya and Yulia are fast friends to the point where things like this can happen without damaging their relationship because they're able to be open but still end up respectful.
> 
> Aaaaaaa, I just have a lot of feelings about my friends' characters and they're all so good.


	9. Tooth and Nail

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Story tags and rating have been updated appropriately with this chapter being added. Please be advised.

She could take this. This was nothing. Each hit from the swarm of enemies was but a temporary discomfort.

The dragoon was doing his best, each Coerthan Torment flashing about with a Nastrond blinking through with blood red lines of light. Freeze spells, flares, and incantations of triplecast flurried from the black mage, explosions rocking the ground around her. Even still, the swarm wasn't dying as quickly as they should.

_Tough bastards._

She had ultimate faith in her healer. This unassuming elezen white mage she'd traveled with always came through. The flash of brilliant light of magical wings, followed by a circle of dancing swirls of light, helped to mitigate some of the damage. Along with her own abilities, Jun wasn't _dead,_ but she soon would be if the damage couldn't step up. Each blow's pain grew more and more unmanageable, the slices and bludgeoning hitting with more fervor. Raising her gunblade, she fired the bullet that wouldn't immediately kill her, but certainly wracked her body with pain as the force of the cartridge penetrated her temple.

_Superbolide._

For the next brief handful of breaths, the pain evaporated. The next thing she knew, everything went black with an enemy connecting with her ribs, the savage cracking all she could hear or feel.

A gentle surge of light reached from the beyond, like a hand extending to her, telling her that it wasn't over yet.

When she opened her eyes, the mobs lay dead at her feet. She felt no pain, her wounds fully healed with the traces of the spell _benediction_ fading from her skin. The dragoon knelt on one knee, leaning on their lance, her and the black mage panting. Beaten and bloody, but not dead. Doing a final scan in relief, that feeling faded in the flash of cold running through her blood.

_Where was Yulia?_

Her blood pounded in her ears, she couldn't even hear the clatter of her gunblade falling to the ground. Frantically searching among the bodies of the fallen, she found a glimpse of tattered, bloody white attached to the unmoving body of their healer. Her cane lay snapped beside her. She was breathing, but only just. "A potion! Anything, what do you have?!" Jun couldn't even recognize her own voice, fear and panic bleeding through as she tried to feel for a pulse.

Fluttering, faint, everything slowly growing cold.

_No no no no no no--_

This wasn't supposed to happen. How did this happen?

_No no no no._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This actually references the 'joke' in my FC server that gunbreakers shoot themselves in the face and that's what brings them to 1 HP. Everything is hand-waved.
> 
> A part one of two. This will resolve in the next chapter.


	10. Clamor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A continuation of Tooth and Nail. Resolution....somewhat.

The black mage scrabbled in their pouches while Jun frantically pressed her hands against Yulia's torso, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding long enough for healing of any kind to come forward. All the while, a variety of curses spilled from her lips. "Look at me, stay with me."

A faint laugh bubbled from her lips, and Jun had to close her eyes to not think about the blood pooling within her chest. "It still worked," Yulia whispered, breath coming shallow and slow. "You went down. I did what...I had to."

"Shut up, stupid," Jun shot back. "You didn't have to do that, why did you do that? Where in the seven hells is that potion?!"

Yulia tried to muster words, but couldn't. Scarlet leaked from the corners of her mouth, drawing trails down her cheeks and staining her hair. Under her fingers, Jun could feel the breath starting to slow, the blood against her skin cooling in the air. Her own words stopped in her throat, the stone growing there damming up any emotion behind her eyes. It soon threatened to either burst through tears or implode in her chest. If that black mage didn't find something soon...

What did it mean? Jun was no stranger to death. It was part and parcel with the job, adventurers died all the time. It was an accepted occupational hazard and way of life. Jun herself had close calls more frequently than most, so why did it matter?

Yulia's skin color nearly matched her white tattoo over her left eye. The green of her eyes was starting to glaze over, her focus faltering. 

Boots scuffed the rubble next to her, and Jun didn't even look up to see the black mage producing a hi-potion. Uncorking it in a flash, he poured it into Yulia's mouth slowly so she wouldn't choke on the medicinal blend. Her pulse was so faint, Jun could no longer feel it. In that moment, her own heart seemed to stop and the dungeon air froze. She wasn't _allowed_ to die, no, she would _not_ allow it. Who else would give her experimental food for dinner when everyone else in the party refused outright? Who else would be _this stupid_ that she would openly forget when an enemy was stabbing her, too focused on helping contribute to mob clear duty? Who else smiled and cheered when the day was finally theirs, a job complete and well done?

As Yulia's chest rose with a stuttering breath, Jun's own breath sucked in as her eyes flew open, waking in a cold sweat. Her heart thrummed at the speed of a hundred chocobo, her sheets drenched and sticking to her. "What in the _fuck,_ " she breathed, wiping her forehead. That memory had spent so long locked in the neat little box in her heart where Jun stuffed it upon retiring, swearing to herself it wouldn't happen again and that she would forget. This time it was so vivid, so crystal clear, made more nightmarish that it was easier to remember Yulia slowly dying in her arms than it was to remember her coming back.

They'd never spoken about it since then. Yulia carrying on much the same as she always had. Jun _couldn't._ The regret wouldn't let her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I crawl back into my hole to cry. Choo choo, welcome to this portion of the story where the angst train gets to barrel through.
> 
> See you next time, hopefully this can be fixed???


	11. Ache

A cold bath wasn't enough to wash away the night terror from before. Though the sweat had long since been scrubbed free, the false smell of blood seemed to linger everywhere. Though, a more pungent smell wafted from the kitchen of the bar from below, and far more intriguing. It was coffee, a drink enjoyed by few in Kugane where the preferred hot beverage of choice steeped leaves instead of beans. One such individual in the employ of the _Wanderer_ enjoyed coffee first thing in the morning.

Unfortunately, there would be no avoiding her.

"Oh, good morning, Jun," Yulia yawned as she waved. "Did you want some?"

Normally, Jun didn't enjoy coffee, finding it bitter and too dark in flavor. Somehow, a particular strain from Gridania found its way into Yulia's stock and she brewed the coffee grounds with salt to remove the bitterness. The result with a touch of heavy cream, sugar, and milk, and it was more warm and comforting than she was accustomed to. "Sure," she muttered, rubbing the eye crossed over with a dark scar.

"Rough night?"

Jun snorted. "Aren't they always?"

Yulia hummed absently, mixing the cup purely from muscle memory. "Only because you want them to be. Sometimes, it seems like you want it to be this way."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The elezen woman sighed, handing the steaming mug over and returning to her seat, leaning her face against her hand with eyes closed. "Because if you didn't want things this way, wouldn't you change it? You have the power to do whatever you want, you know? And before you tell me it's not that easy, I know better, and I know _you_ better. That's what I really believe, but you don't have to answer any of that." Her voice was quiet and tired, lacking its usual bubbly cheer. "I really wish whatever it is, you'd do something about it. You might feel a certain way about it, but everyone else can see it too."

_Even you?_

She cracked open an eye and spied Jun's raised eyebrow. "Oh, we've been over this. You've told me off time and again about 'putting on too much of a show', but who's pretending _now_? I have eyes, you know. I don't like you like this, it hurts me here to see it." She pressed her hand over her chest. "But it's too early for such things. Is the coffee too bitter? I can make another cup if it isn't to your taste."

To be honest, Jun had forgotten about the hot cup in her hands, but took a sip to at least mollify that small worry. "You know I only drink this coffee because you somehow make it right."

The laugh she earned was short, mostly from weariness. "I don't doubt that at all, you know. I'll make tea next time, I promise. I managed to sneak in some of the best blends that you like, all the way from Ishgard and Ul'dah. We'll need to make the Ishgardian tea with yak milk, though, but you and I will be used to that taste. The birch syrup, though, I think we're almost out of..." She continued to mumble on under her breath about the different preparations necessary with new tea set implements, Jun just watched her and sipped the coffee. The warmth of the liquid managed to melt through the ice slowly forming around her heart. All that was left underneath the cold exterior was a dull ache, throbbing with every beat.

"Is everything all right?" Yulia was blinking, standing up and putting a hand over Jun's forehead. "Are you sure you're well? Maybe you should just rest for today. Between the rest of us, surely we can take care of things."

Jun's silver eyes widened at the touch, but only a moment before smiling and scoffing with a shrug. "Who am I to argue with you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't even know, it's late and what was that about not planning anything about this. It's really a new experience for me, because I usually plan everything I work on when it comes to plot and what I would like to happen with character development. So this is a little bit of a scary new thing to do, because it leaves a lot of things up to experimentation and the unknown. Hopefully it's been coming out to your satisfaction!
> 
> Please look forward to more!


	12. Fade

"What in box?"

Yulia's room above the bar was next to both Jun and Freya's, sandwiched neatly in between. While the space itself was sparse at best in terms of decoration, it was very neat and well-kept. There was very little in terms of keepsakes, though a small box on the table by the window had caught Freya's attention while Yulia dressed.

"Just little things."

"I look?" When Yulia nodded, Freya carefully flicked up the latch keeping the lid closed and peered inside. There was a hidden drawer beneath too, and both held an assortment of jewelry and small knickknacks collected over the years. Colorful semiprecious stones carefully tumbled to a smooth shine, rings, and a small locket on a bracelet. When Freya tried to open the locket, it wouldn't budge. It seemed stuck with age.

Another necklace caught her attention, but this one seemed familiar. It was a pendant on a long chain, the stone clear resin with a pressed flower inside. The resin helped preserve the brilliant blues and purples in the petals, even if it was given long ago. Freya remembered it very clearly, taken aback at seeing it after so many years. "You are still...having this?" The emotion surprised her with how it choked up the words.

"Hm? Oh, that? Of course. Why wouldn't I? It was my first gift outside my den," she replied, smiling brightly as she stepped over and took the pendant from Freya's hands. Slipping it over her head, she tucked it neatly underneath her clothes, the locket following on her wrist. "I always want to keep that memory alive, I never want to forget it."

The memory of finding an elezen dozing off under a tree deep within a Shroud, seeing her travel throughout day after day with no contact with another person. Surprising her with a flower and broken speech, asking if she was lost. "Never forget..." Freya's words trailed off.

Yulia nodded. "I made my first real friend that day. That memory is special to me, as are you." She ruffled Freya's hair and kissed the top of it before moving on to put on her boots. "Shall we? The weather looks fine, we should go for a walk before we have to open."

Freya nodded. "Yes, be walking in dawn good. Remind of home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No substance really, only cute.
> 
> Legit how those two would have met. Yulia is really sentimental. But what is the locket, I don't know.


	13. Where The Heart Is

Little Ladies' Day. A day where the target of one's affections can be a princess for a day, waited on hand and foot. No request would be too large or too small, and going overboard with grandiose gestures was not only common, but encouraged.

Freya had this day marked for weeks. The bar itself would be closed, but she had _plans._ Not for herself, but for someone else. Two someone elses, but that was beside the point. Marching herself down to the bar the night before, she found Ezra cleaning up and closing the bar with Rae'leon waiting for her to finish so they could make their way home.

"Ezra, we have problem," she said matter of factly, resting her hands on the countertop. "Tomorrow Little Lady Day."

"Yes, it is. I'm glad we don't have to work that day, I'll be a little busy."

Rae'leon's ears twitched as he chuckled. "Of course. I don't _need_ an excuse to treat you like a princess, my love, but if I _must_ then so be it."

"No no, we needing to help--"

The doors burst open at that moment, interrupting her sentence. A singular individual stepped in from the night air, the cloak a familiar dark shade and make, but the hood blown back from his running. Red hair mussed from the wind, and ears flattened back, there stood a miqo'te man with hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. "I need..."

"Wait a minute, I know you," Ezra murmured. "You're the man who comes in and sits at _that_ table all the time."

"I need your help! Please!" This time he was using his posture to go into a full bow. "It's about Ninian Inoue!"

"All right, all right, calm down before the entire district hears you. Grab a seat." As he did, Ezra poured him a glass of water and shoved it across the counter. "What do you need help with?"

"Tomorrow's Little Ladies' Day, and I want to ask her, but she's been getting asked constantly by other men." His breath came out in shallow pants as his breath steadied. "But I want to be the one."

"What's your name, stranger? We've all been curious who her secret admirer is. You're the one who's been sending her all the gifts, right?"

"My name is Eliwood, and yes." He bowed again, this time his forehead only a finger's width away from the bartop. "Can you help me?"

"I think we can," Ezra nodded, then looked at Freya. "Did we need to help someone else, too?"

Freya's grin turned cat-like. "I thinking we can help boss get wish."


	14. Lucubration

The night before was nothing but a blur for Eliwood Phe'rae. Between Rae'leon (who was drafted in relatively willingly) and Ezra, he was put through his paces on his education about the woman he wanted to pursue. No stone was left unturned, between going over Ninian's preferences and interests, her hobbies, even what foods she liked to eat.

Luckily for them, Yulia was already occupying her time with tutoring on tea ceremony, the elezen a rapt student upstairs in Ninian's bedroom.

The one unfortunate aspect that they were stonewalled on with Eliwood was _dancing._ They were lucky enough that Freya was similar enough in height and stature to Ninian that she made a great practice partner, but either something was wrong with his center of gravity or he legitimately had two left feet. He was just _bad._ Not lacking in terms of enthusiasm or desire to learn, but Freya eventually had to stop for a drink and to reassess with the other two.

"It's bad, isn't it," he said, completely deflated with ears drooping.

"Yes, but not unsalvageable. Maybe we're going about this the wrong way, my love," Rae'leon murmured to Ezra, then turning to Eliwood himself. "Perhaps the more traditional Othard dances would be easier to master than those of Eorzea or Ishgard. There is less contact with the other partner, to be sure, but you would only need to learn the steps. You wouldn't have to manage your partner nearly as much. It may also appeal to both she and you in the respect that it's considered more chaste than other dance forms. You strike me as a more chivalrous soul than most, so perhaps we can give this a try instead?"

Ezra kissed Rae'leon on the cheek. "You're a genius. I'll get a book on this, we'll study into the night!"

Both Eliwood and Freya groaned. It would be a long night indeed.


	15. Admit

Freya did not have to suffer long as a dance instructor. Oh no, she had other plans.

Slipping out during one of the breaks, she crept up the stairs, her feet barely making a sound with each step as she found the door to Jun's room. It was shut, of course, but sounds of movement and tinkering with metal meant she wasn't asleep yet. Freya knocked and said, "Boss, it me."

"Give me a minute." More rustling and a drawer closing, but before long, the door opened to reveal Jun. "Did you need something?"

"Talk?" Freya gestured within the bedroom.

Jun stepped aside to let her in and closed the door behind them. "What's going on? Is something wrong."

Freya nodded. "Wrong with you." She poked her finger at Jun's stomach for emphasis. "No more mope."

"What are you talking about, I'm not mo--"

"Yes, you mope. You thinking we not seeing?" Freya crossed her arms over her chest, both feet planted firmly to stand her ground. "You having feeling for Yulia, you hurting. You need stop, now."

With every word that came out of Freya's mouth, Jun's face morphed from confusion, to frustration, to acceptance. Her shoulders slumped, if only a little. "Is it really that obvious?"

Freya nodded. "We all seeing it."

"Does she know?" Jun asked with a wince.

"She no need. She love you, she no seeing how _you_ feel, two no saying thing to other. Why you thinking she working here?"

With how the other woman stiffened at those words, Freya could have sworn a stiff breeze would have knocked her over. "No, she doesn't. She can't."

Freya pressed further. "She can, she _does_. You having no saying over it. You do too, yes? It plain to seeing." Before Jun could argue the point, she interrupted her. "You can being happy too, boss. You making her happy every day, so she do same too, yes? If you letting. I having plan."

The last three words piqued Jun's interest, perhaps against her better judgement. "What kind of plan?" Her tone of resignation signaled defeat, and Freya's ultimate victory.

"You knowing tomorrow Little Lady Day, yes? Making Yulia princess for day, you being knight, yes?"


	16. Foibles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit long, had to cut it off at a point because wow.

While the bar was closed for Little Ladies' Day, that didn't mean the bar wasn't busy. Far from it. The entire day was _exhausting,_ and they weren't even done yet. There would still be the annual gala in the evening, but even more preparation was required. Freya had a lot to do still, and Ezra had just returned from a lovely breakfast and day out with her fiance. She and Rae'leon were at the bartop enjoying the quiet before the doors burst open.

Jun stormed in, followed by Eliwood, and he collapsed in a seat with sweat on his brow. Jun's own was furrowed in frustration and her cheeks were stained with a deep flush.

"What happening?!" Freya asked in a little bit of a panic, running over to them.

"What _didn't_ happen?" both of them chimed at the same time.

***

_Earlier that day_

"Freya, it's dawn. Why do we have to do this right now?" Jun said with a yawn.

"Because Yulia is sleep, and you need knowing to dance, yes? The galaing happen tonight!"

Jun shook her head, already reaching for a cheese roll for an impromptu breakfast. "I don't know how to dance, never wanted to learn."

Freya got right up into her personal space with hands on her hips and cheeks puffed up with a scowl. "You need knowing! Ladies like sweeping on feet. Off feet? Yes, yes! Imagine Yulia with pretty dress, yes? All dress up, look pretty, see her in your arm? Yes?"

The moment Jun pictured Yulia in a dress, likely of Ninian's choosing, she had already lost.

***

Chocolates, twenty thousand gil a box, ordered and tied neatly with gilded ribbon. Sparkling rolanberry juice, bottled specially for a rare vintage, added to the basket. Little baubles and trinkets with small bits of jewelry in velvet boxes carefully placed throughout. Eliwood was _certain_ this would be appropriate. He even paid special attention to ask Ezra and Yulia what her favorite spots around Kugane would be for different times of day.

Tea house for the morning.

Markets for the afternoon.

Beaches at night.

How was he supposed to know her routine would be different all of a sudden?!

***

Out of all the broken advice Freya had given, getting a bouquet of flowers for Yulia made the most sense. One, even Jun knew that most wooing song and dances in different cultures included gifting of flowers. Two, Yulia truly did love them. Choosing white roses, jasmine, and honeysuckle--though this one was imported and therefore more expensive _by far_ \--among others, but eventually the florist was able to tie it neatly with a round of fabric.

Choosing to surprise her with it after her morning routine, too, was the correct choice. Yulia's green eyes lit up with delight as it was sheepishly presented to her, Jun scratching the back of her head and trying not to die of embarrassment. "These are so beautiful! Thank you so much!" The beaming smile was reward enough, and Jun's heart skipped a beat.

What happened next was entirely _not_ according to plan.

"Oh Freya, do you want a flower? They're so pretty, you have to!"

Over the course of the next hour, most of the flowers in the bouquet had been given to friends and neighbors, bringing smiles and compliments all around. Behind Yulia, Freya shook her head in consternation as Jun slapped her own forehead.

***

Ezra, Freya, and Rae'leon all blinked at the two as they panted.

Rae'leon looked at the two women beside him and cocked his head to the side, ears twitching. "Yes, that's bad, but not irreversible. The gala is later tonight, and you did practice dancing earlier today, did you not?"

"We practice, yes," Freya agreed, nodding her head. "They do okay. Will being good enough, yes. Yulia practicing too, early today. She needing know dance too. But they ready, yes! Dress up now?"

Eliwood and Jun both blanched. "Dress up?"

Ezra's grin was almost feral. "Oh, you can't go into the Little Ladies' Royal Gala dressed like you normally are. If ladies dress up like princesses, then shouldn't their prospective partners look their part as well? This is a good opportunity to make up lost ground. What girl could resist someone she finds attractive when they're decked out in sharp duds?" She pecked Rae'leon on the cheek for emphasis.

He continued that train of thought. "I've been around long enough, I know my way around a seamstress's wares. I was able to guess measurements, but the boxes in the back are garments we were able to choose for you. I do hope you like them, but I can guarantee you'll catch the eye of your intended," he said with a wink.

After some struggle in respective rooms, they were able to exit to the main bar room for final approval. Where Eliwood was dressed in a brilliant sky blue kimono with white hakama, Jun wore a crisp black suit in the three pieced style of formal Eorzean events. Rae'leon nodded approval and Freya excitedly drummed her hands on the counter. "Perfect perfect! You are matching them, yes! You looking like escort for princess! Very good!"

"Which brings us to our next point, I suppose. I should think they are ready, I believe the gala is about to start. We wouldn't want to be late." Rae'leon looked them over once again, and both Eliwood and Jun realized at the same moment that indeed, the others were dressed in formal attire. "Oh ladies," he called up in the direction of the stairs, "are you quite finished?"

Ninian's voice rang out clear as a bell. "Yes! I'm so sorry we're taking so long, but I think we're done!" After a few rustles and a loud _thump_ that made everyone at the lower level wince, she was the first to make her way down the stairs. Her hair was pinned up with small pink blossoms cascading from the wooden pins, her steps gentle as the hem of her kimono barely rustled with the movement. The pattern of elegant pink petals falling in an imaginary breeze swirled in a beautiful pattern down the fabric with silver threads worked through to make it shimmer like water. "How do I look?"

Freya and Ezra high fived under the countertop as Eliwood's grip on the chair went to full white knuckles. "You look..."

When it appeared that his words failed him, Rae'leon piped up behind him. "Ninian, dear, this is Eliwood Phe'rae. He would like nothing more than to be your knight this evening, if you would have him."

Her smile only appeared to kill him further. "Certainly. I would like that very much. You look very dashing." She laughed behind her sleeve and took another few steps to get out of the way, with clicking noises coming down the stairs.

It was Jun's turn to nearly turn a bit of wood into splinters as her heart leapt to her throat.

Where Ninian had a proper silhouette of a true Hingashi lady in every sense of the term, Yulia was the picture of a lady from a different region entirely. Lace adorned the edges of the plunging neckline to give her a _chance_ at modesty, the way the cut of the midnight blue dress hugged at her hips was nearly flush with her skin before releasing at her knees in a series of graceful runs of tulle. She didn't _seem_ taller, though, so no heeled shoes. Glittering drop earrings hung from her pointed ears with her hair pinned up in an elegant and sleek twist. She held the rail of the stairwell to keep her balance, and gave a nervous smile. "Sorry for the wait, thank you for your patience."

"Think nothing of it," Rae'leon said with a wave of his hand. "Doesn't she look lovely, Jun?"

"Yeah, doesn't she look lovely, _Jun_ _?"_ Ezra echoed with a mischievous smile.

Jun shot Ezra a quick death glare before turning back to Yulia, her embarrassed smile still frozen on her face. "You look..." No words seemed right. Beautiful? Like a vision? A dream? Everything seemed like flowery poetic garbage that didn't seem right.

Her 'partner's chuckle brought her back to the moment. "You too. You should wear this sort of thing more often." Her light tone almost fooled Jun, with her eyes catching Yulia's own death grip on the rail as those same green eyes looked the suit from head to toe, then back up.

Twelve save them all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued in a separate part.


	17. Argy-Bargy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A note that certain flavors of this will smack lightly of non-consensual harassment. Being careful to not go aggressively too far into it, but if that's something that triggers you, please be aware.

Oh, but the gala was _beautiful._

It was mostly indoors due to the cold winter still slowly melting into spring, but the fires lit near the walls provided enough warmth that clothing need not be lined or include furs. Ribbons were strewn all along the walls bedecked with white and gold. Small lights floated in the air like stars, glowing enough to give light but to a flattering dimness that created many a nook to sneak away in. Uniformed men and women walked along the edges of the dance floor with trays of drinks, both alcoholic and otherwise, as well as little finger foods to nibble on before the dinner was served.

Music wafted through the air, a light melody from deep within Othard, and Ninian took Eliwood's hand with a gentle tug. "Shall we dance?"

"As much as you want." He allowed himself to be led as Freya made her way to find food and Ezra vanished into the crowd with Rae'leon, leaving Jun and Yulia standing alone.

Yulia held onto Jun's arm with a vice grip as she stared around the room. "This is definitely something else. Little Ladies' Day must be an important holiday."

"Something like that. Don't tell me you didn't celebrate it in Ishgard?"

Yulia shook her head. "They were busy with...other matters, and elezen were fewer in Limsa Lominsa and Ul'dah as a rule. I was usually several heads taller than most, and that usually doesn't lend itself well to things like this."

"A shame. Being a princess suits you."

Red colored Yulia's ears, down to the back of her neck. "What would you like to do then, o knight?"

It was Jun's turn to look away and blush in embarrassment. "Whatever you want to do."

Yulia opened her mouth to say something, then closed it and shook her head. "I'm not sure. Maybe something to drink to start?"

"You're starting with something to drink, hm?" Ezra chimed in, appearing out of thin air behind Yulia's shoulder, making her startle and hold on tighter to keep her balance. "Why not start with a dance? This one is wrapping up, I'm sure they'll play something you could be familiar with."

"Oh, I think you underestimate how bad I am and how tight this dress is. One wrong move and I feel like it'll split down the side."

Ezra offered her hand. "Shall we test it, then? If you don't mind, Jun."

Jun nodded slowly and released Yulia to Ezra's grasp, and they vanished onto the dance floor. Rae'leon moved silently to stand beside her instead. "Shall we join them, then? If you don't mind me as a partner."

"Never."

Stepping onto the floor, the music changed to a slower tune, more Eorzean in flavor. Rae'leon's grip was steady as he took the lead. "You seem nervous. Is this not what you would have hoped for, or is something else the matter?" When Jun hesitated, he lightly pressed further. "Or perhaps it is something in your mutual past."

Jun's stare whipped straight towards his, no longer scanning the crowd but fixated squarely on one individual. "What are you talking about."

Rae'leon sighed. "I suppose the cat's out of the bag, or it should have been before now. We talked about this but it's clear you don't remember. Ishgardian booze is strong stuff, it unlocks even your secrets, particularly ones associated with a former adventuring party. Your last one, I believe." His tone took on a hushed volume as he held her hands still, guiding her through the steps and preventing her from walking away. "You and I talked about death and regret. Hers and yours. I highly doubt she blames you, she's not a good enough actress to hide things from me. Why would you blame yourself instead?"

"Because I let her die. It was my mistake."

"So you said then, too, but is it more than that? Tell me true, are you afraid to lose her because if you get close enough it would hurt more than you could imagine? Welcome to anyone who has surrendered their heart to another. If anything happened to Ezra, I _know_ my heart would never recover because she _is_ my heart. That is how love is, my friend. If you do love her, and I believe you do, of course things like that would be hard, but why allow it to keep you from being happy?"

"I don't deserve that."

"It is not noble to punish yourself for a self-imposed sin. I wonder what her thoughts would be, about that incident." His ears drooped, then perked. "Perhaps you should talk to her about this."

Jun shook her head. "There's never a good time."

"Perhaps then the Twelve will smile on you, my friend, and the opportunity will present itself like an open door." With a simple slip and sleight of hand, suddenly, Rae'leon and Ezra were dancing and Yulia was standing in Jun's grip completely bewildered.

"Oh," they both echoed simultaneously.

"Funny you know this dance," Yulia murmured as Jun put her hand on her waist. "It's perhaps the only one I know well."

"That may have been intentional. I'm starting to see others' machinations in all of this." Looking past Yulia's shoulder, Jun could spy Freya with dango and a big smile, her eyes watching them intently.

"Oh, I don't think I mind. I think it's sweet how they're trying so hard. Is everything all right with you? You don't look very pleased about something."

Jun's eyes widened, the silver showing through in the light from the fires nearby. "Oh, it's not about you. It's something..." Her voice trailed off as she bit her lip, swallowed hard and looked away. "Something we should have talked about before."

"Eh? We can always--"

"About the well, when I let you die." Jun felt Yulia's body stiffen at the mention of it, but she still moved through the steps of the dance, the music continuing its blissful tune. "I couldn't--I _can't_ stop thinking about it, dreaming about it, it's the one nightmare I can't shake."

"But you didn't _let_ me die. If anyone did that, it was me." Jun snapped her head to look and this time it was Yulia's turn to look...ashamed? Sorrowful? The tears were just starting to creep into her eyes, her voice small and cracking. "It was my mistake, I should have been more careful with my magic and my aether. I was careless, and we lost you for a moment. If anyone should be begging for forgiveness, it has to be me. I thought you retired because you didn't want to work with amateurs, not because of... _this._ I panicked because I didn't want to lose you. I am so, _so_ sorry, and I wish I had known you had felt this way before."

_"Whatever it was, it couldn't have been that bad, right?"_

_"I wonder what her thoughts would be, about that incident."_

Jun opened her mouth and tried to say the words she should have said long ago. Instead, what came out was, "I can't do this." Before Yulia could react, Jun slipped away from her and walked completely in the other direction. She couldn't breathe past the rock forming in her throat, the burning in her eyes. She didn't stop until she made it to one of the alcoves leading outside to blessed cold night air. Even out in the open, she couldn't breathe.

"Boss?" Freya's voice rang out in the quiet.

Ezra's voice followed. "Jun, what _happened_ out there?"

"I _don't_ want to--" Jun stopped short in seeing their faces, both written with worry and confusion. "I just...I feel like I'm drowning. I need a minute to just _breathe._ "

"Taking easy, please." Freya gently pushed her towards a bench. "What happening? Beginning starting, when ready."

And so Jun did, from the beginning, far back before the bar, before the well, when all her heart's burdens were centered around proving her worth with steel in her hand and comrades at her side. With each passing moment of recounting the full tale with no detail spared, the weight lessened from her chest. Breathing came easier, the burning faded. Her hands stopped shaking, the cotton mouth less intense.

When she was finished, Ezra let out a low, long whistle. "Sure is a lot there. But it sounds like she forgave you? At least it seemed like there was nothing you did to warrant forgiveness."

"Because she love her," Freya interjected adamantly with a firm nod. "Jun and Yulia not forgiving each other, busy punishing self. You looking happy dancing first thing. _Real_ happy, first happy. Feeling better now?"

Jun let out a long, slow breath. "Yeah."

"Drowning feeling never going away. Love like..." Freya stopped to try and grasp the right words. "Love like drowning in sea of candy floss. Drowning in syrup. Drowning but liking it. I knowing feeling. But love feeling like peace too, like everything being okay forever. Nothing needing saying."

"She's right. So what do you want to do?"

A little shriek broke through the air with a voice Jun's ear knew _too_ well. She knew that distress. She didn't _like_ that distress. Storming around the corner, Freya and Ezra following behind, she spotted two men and Yulia. One of them had a hand wrapped around her wrist, both were laughing. "...should come with us, princess."

"I don't want to, I'm here with someone else."

"Oh, that broad? You should leave her behind, we have a couple of friends man enough to--"

"Hey." Both turned to see Jun, flanked from behind. "She said she doesn't want to."

"Speaking of _that broad._ What do you think you're going to do about it, eh? Cute exotic girls like her are wasted on trash like you, so I think she'll be--"

He never got to finish his sentence before Jun's fist connected squarely with his jaw with the sound of bone shattering in the night air. He cried out in pain and stumbled into his fellow, who just turned and ran tail. "Trash like me is going to take this cute girl _far_ away from you," she said coldly, standing over him and cracking her knuckles. "Better get lost before I _really_ lose my temper." He didn't need further convincing, running while holding his face in his hands with blood dripping as he went.

All three of the other women looked after him in shock before all turning their heads slowly to stare at Jun, the mask of icy fury slowly but surely melting away as she shook out her hand. Yulia's mouth was agape. "That was _very_ reckless of you. You run a business!"

Jun raised her eyebrow. "What else is a knight supposed to do when her princess is in danger, hm?"

"And you aren't trash!" She stomped her foot for extra emphasis.

"I know I'm not," Jun chuckled, reaching forward to hold Yulia's balled up hands. "I'm just really bad at this."

"I had it handled," Yulia muttered, wiping at her eye.

"Sure thing. Just clean up crew over here."

Words not even uttered since before she had arrived in Kugane, but familiar words that made Yulia relax nonetheless, and she lightly rested her forehead on Jun's. She cracked one eye open. "So you think I'm cute?"

The sputtering from Jun was only barely drowned out by laughter, and Ninian's own chuckling from beyond a curtained off section went unnoticed. She concealed it behind her kimono sleeve, with Eliwood peering over her shoulder. "And I thought _I_ was bad," he whispered and she batted a hand at him.

"Oh, you _are,_ but enough of that," she chided. "I don't need a horoscope to see that good fortune with love is in the stars for those two. Fu fu, and good fortune in your love life too, as it were."

"Eh?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that argy-bargy came from a Scottish rhyme for arguing? I sure didn't!
> 
> Jun is a Highlander, she could definitely break a man's jaw and more if she felt like it. That girl swole AF with her highlander sister from another mister Ezra. Bash sisters, if you will. Would 1000000% snap a man in half if Yulia was in danger.
> 
> I secretly like devious Ninian. Perhaps we shall see more of her.


	18. Shuffle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to something light because my brain is dead and needs more coffee.

Happy chatter barely covered the soft flutter of cards being gently shuffled and cut. Yulia was gleefully brushing out Jun's hair and experimenting with different plaits as the woman in front of her grumbled that she didn't have to. Freya and Ezra mixed different drinks to refill the empty pitchers as Ninian arranged the cards in a soft sweep before her.

"Who would like a reading?"

Both Freya and Yulia's hands shot up excitedly.

"You readings very scary and accurate. I wanting one tonight!"

"She's right, you're always on the money." Yulia hummed with a comb in her hands. "Perhaps you should just do a reading for all of us!"

"I'll wait, I think a few others are more antsy for this than I am," Jun mumbled, fingers drumming along her crossed knees.

"When you're done, Ninian, I can fetch my cards and do a spread for you, too! It wouldn't be fair for you to not get one, you know?"

She smiled up at Yulia. "That's very sweet, I'd really like that. Now Freya, what would you like your reading to be?" When the other Au Ra girl shrugged, she nodded. "Maybe just a general one, then. I'll choose three and we'll interpret them from there." Upon drawing the cards and gently laying them on the floor, she chuckled. "A new venture, perhaps one in romance. Shifting family dynamics or a change in home life. This last one is luck within finances or material things. All things considered, very favorable. The stars are with you."

Freya pumped her fist in the air with a small shout of victory. "You seeing, Ezra? Good fortune!"

Ezra set the pitchers back on the floor within easy access. "You were born under a lucky star after all."

"Shall we do yours next, Yulia?" Ninian shifted to face the two, Yulia now fixated on a style of Ishgardian braid. "Can you just tap the cards for me to attune to them, and I can take care of the rest? You seem a little busy." With the required tap, she shuffled the cards again, and cut them to redistribute the reading. "Let's look at your love life, shall we?"

Yulia eagerly nodded as Jun's flush extended to the tips of her ears and her nails started to dig into her knees. "Oh yes! I haven't had that looked into in _years._ I'd love to hear what your cards have to say."

Drawing three cards, Ninian chuckled upon seeing them, her eyes flicking to Jun's over the edges of the delicately filigreed border. "Well, aren't _these_ interesting. An old flame and a new venture, but this flame burns long and strong. This wheel is good fortune of a long-lived nature, and the last card is one of domesticity and pleasure within the home. Perhaps a home of your own? The way that these are arranged in this order definitely points to good luck in your near future."

Jun felt _extremely_ trapped by the subtle wink tossed her way by the astrologian, but Yulia laughed. "I hope so! That's a favorable reading for sure, it seems like we're on a winning streak."

"Jun, would you like the next one."

"Oh, I'll _pass._ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *cackles*


	19. Beam

It was for posterity, the man with the strange contraption said. Why wouldn't someone want a picture hanging in their establishment? Think of the memories, and having a moment of time frozen within a frame. He would instruct them on how to hold still and what poses could fit within the small lense, but all they would have to do is think of a happy memory when he told them.

"All right now, you're all perfectly lined up! How fortunate that your group is so perfectly suited to this with your height range. Now smile!"

Ezra thought of Rae'leon, his gentle smile and mischievous nature as a pirate. She remembered meeting the girls in his care, how much love existed in that house, and how she had been accepted within that bubble without question. The pain of homeland and a wanderer's existence slowly disappeared in his company, replaced by a deep affection shown in every touch and call of her name. And in a brief moment of passion and complete lack of prelude, he had asked her (rather loudly) to marry him.

In some way, he beat her to the punch. The memory of her shock, warmth in her chest, and retort of wanting to ask him first made her laugh to herself, the smile lines forming and wrinkling the tattoos around her eyes.

Freya thought back to the first month of all of them working together. It was a cold night, the fire crackling in the hearth and drinks poured for everyone after closing time. Yulia and Ninian had invited her to play a game of cards while they watched Ezra and Jun hold one arm wrestling contest after another. After three glasses of mead for each of them, Ezra had dared Jun to take a bite out of one of the highland cabbages in the back like an apple. The vegetable was notoriously tough, but with the almost feral ferocity between the two half-drunk women, backing down wasn't an option.

She giggled at the memory of Jun taking that bite, and the laughter that rang through the bar as she went behind the counter to spit it out. It was the first time all of them had been able to spend any sort of meaningful time together.

Ninian closed her eyes and pictured the markets of Kugane, the first shopping trip she had organized for all of them. Seeing Freya's eyes light up at the jeweler's stalls and darting back and forth to look at one shiny bauble after another was just as funny as Yulia's dumbfounded look at the new styles of clothing and fashion. Jun had worn a look of amused exasperation at them both before handing her purse over to the two as Ezra supervised, making sure they didn't spend every gil to her name.

She smiled fondly at the thought that days like that would likely come more and more frequently.

Yulia thought back to their first trip as a group to a beach outside of Shirogane for Moonfire Faire, her first one in fact. It wasn't just ridiculously embarrassing to see everyone in swimming attire (she had pestered Jun over and over until the woman relented and put on an unbuttoned linen shirt), but it was her first time seeing the ocean. She had spent so much time in there that her hair took on a curly and salt-textured turn once it dried, and she would have frozen if not for the bonfire later.

Her chuckle at the memory of Jun and Ezra arguing playfully over how the bonfire was to be constructed was accompanied by a rosy hue to her cheeks, along with the phantom sensation of roasted sweets left in the coals to caramelize and melting on the tongue while watching fireworks reflected on the waves.

It wasn't that Jun didn't have happy memories. From her father to her years as an adventurer, to tinkering with her first gunblade, to different stories around a campfire in the middle of nowhere, to having her own business, there were too many to count. Each one was precious, but when the time came to think of something that made her happy, her thoughts turned to the future. What memories could she make with the group around her? Ezra, the steadfast warrior who shared many familiar things of home and motherland, whose loyalty held a depth for anyone she called friend. Ninian, so refined and feminine yet unafraid to make her values and opinions known, whose wisdom came not just from experience but from a kind heart. Freya, a chaotic gremlin of a woman who still struggled to articulate her thoughts, but whose perseverance stood as an inspiration to those about to give up.

And then there was the other one.

Yulia, the troublesome elezen who grew up in a cave and struck out into the unknown, whose love showed in the care she put in to everything she did for the group around her. The more Jun remembered, the more she knew that the carefree attitude, while it was all an act, was merely a symptom of that love. Fires that burned for others burned brightly but for a short time if unattended.

Jun smiled as the lightbulb of the device flashed and exploded in a tiny puff of smoke and glass particles.

_Yeah. I'll tell her tomorrow._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, just me being a sap. It's my favorite place to be.


	20. Wish

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *DRUM ROLL*
> 
> HERE'S THE GRADE 3 SHITE

The near constant drumming of rain and claps of thunder shut the _Wanderer_ 's doors early. On rainy days, candles were lit and time spent within private rooms. Most doors were open, with different sounds of tinkering or music wafting through. One room, however, was empty.

Jun normally spent rainy days reading or fine-tuning the new gunblade in the closet, but not today. She resolved to actually say something that should have been shared a long time ago. Perhaps it would help her sleep better at night. It would definitely cease the torture every day seemed to bring. She would just have to go outside and to the roof.

Even though she told Yulia time and again to stay off of the roof during storms, she _refused_ to listen. There was the constant fear that one day she'd slip and fall, but the admonishment was silenced every time with a smile.

_"But I like to be there. I can feel the sky from there. It's like she's crying."_

Walking out the door and to the side where the climb to the roof wasn't steep, but within moments she was soaked through to the skin. Climbing was no issue--she had handled more strenuous activities every morning in trying to keep in shape--but the slickness brought that old fear to the front. _One of these days, she's going to break her neck._

The slight tilt of Yulia's head indicated she heard the approach. "You don't usually come out for this," she hummed, scooting over just an ilm to make more room. Her clothes stuck to her body from the constant downpour, her light hair drenched and darkened. Pale skin was rosy from the slight chill of the rain, but her smile was happy, at peace.

Jun took a seat next to her, looking out from the roof. Only stragglers under oiled umbrellas were out at this hour, but the clouds were still lit from the lights of the port. When she took Yulia's hand, it was surprisingly warm, her own dark skin a stark contrast to a fair complexion of a duskwight. "One of these days you're going to catch a cold, if you keep doing this."

"I haven't yet, so there's no harm in it." She leaned her cheek on a knee as she studied Jun's face. "But if you feel strongly about it, I'll be more careful and I won't stay out so long. Did you need anything?"

"We've known each other a long time, right?"

Yulia blinked then chuckled. "Oh yes. You're one of the people I've known the longest, outside of Freya and a few people in Ishgard. You know that."

She did. Why was this so hard? When it came to confidants, Yulia was an easy one. She was free of judgement and rather than give advice, she just gave a safe space. Who was her safe space? "Sorry, I know it was a dumb question. I just wanted to tell you something important."

Her laugh was light as she squeezed Jun's hand in reassurance. "Of course. You wouldn't come up here if it wasn't."

In that moment, Jun's chest seized up and the words stuck in her throat. Memories of her strange cooking in camps under the stars, her joy at learning a new dance at Moonfire Faire, her utter fear of the sky before seeing a sunset in the clouds, and then her nearly dead among rubble all collided inside, all fighting for supremacy. The feeling of her warm hand brought Jun back down, the feeling coupled with her unblinking green eyes exactly the same as when they danced in the dimly lit grand hall.

"I love you."

Those same eyes widened, hand tightening reflexively. "...What?"

It was like a dam broke, everything came rushing out at once. "I'm the dumb one, it's taken me so long to say it. When you nearly died, I knew, somehow I knew. I didn't want to be the reason you weren't in the world because you make the world brighter. I know it's selfish, but _I_ want to be your reason, _I_ want to make your world brighter." Jun was the first to break the staring contest, looking away and biting her lip. She knew she sounded desperate, but now wasn't the time to care. "Twelve know you're my reason now, even if I've tried not to acknowledge it. I don't deserve to love you, but--"

Warm and soft, the kiss was barely there, but there it was. Yulia's forehead rested on hers for just a moment, and Jun could feel her shoulders shaking. Was she _crying?_ "You don't get to say that, dummy, that's my line," she whispered, barely audible over the rain. "I'm the one who feels like that."

It was Jun's turn to be surprised. "I'm...sorry?"

"You _are_ my reason, I just didn't think you'd feel...like this. I've wished for it for so long." Her laugh was weak and watery, but not from the rain. "I didn't think I would be that lucky. I mean, I _hoped_ , after what happened at the gala, but I thought you deserved someone better than a backwoods duskie who grew up under a rock for forty years."

In that moment, Jun's heart broke. How was that possible, for someone to give so much and feel like they didn't deserve-- "No, that's _my_ line." Slowly, they both started to chuckle, Yulia holding onto the sleeves of Jun's shirt for dear life. "I promise, I will spend _every_ day proving that you do deserve it."  
  
  


"Heh, only if I get to make that promise, too."

Jun's thumb brushed over her cheek, grazing over the beauty mark just under her right eye. "I don't know what to do now," she admitted with a nervous laugh. "I didn't think I'd honestly get this far."

"Say it again."

"Eh?"

The sound was rewarded with another small laugh and a kiss, but this one lingered. "That you love me."

Where Jun expected to feel the butterflies all the other girls wouldn't shut up about growing up, she felt... Freya was right. She felt at peace. It was like drowning, but she liked it. The knot in her chest finally relaxed as she finally got to hold the one person she cherished above all others, almost like a dream. The words no longer fought their way out. They came as naturally as breathing.

"I love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're both gonna have a cold after this! D:
> 
> Oh man, it sure does pay to be a fan of romance movies. Not rom coms, I'm talkin' Pride and Prejudice with Kiera Knightley, yo.
> 
> These kinds of chapters really stress me out because I'm more of a fan of writing fluff than going too hard in the paint on the physical aspects. especially if characters involved aren't implicitly mine. At the same time, I really enjoy them, and there's a reason most of my stories that I write are love stories in some fashion, whether they're platonic, romantic, etc. I just really enjoy the aspects of people that bring joy, this being one. I'm also really lucky to have friends who allow me to work with their characters in these kinds of ways throughout all the chapters thus far, and in those to come. This salute is to them, since I'm in a sappy kind of mood.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it! Please look forward to more!


	21. Sick Day

Waking up the next day, Yulia expected to feel rested, joyful, ready to take on the day. Her heart was full from the day before, why wouldn't she be ready to take on the world?

Instead, her bones _hurt._ Her nose was so stuffed up she couldn't breathe, and her throat felt scratchy. Even getting out of bed to get dressed felt like a chore, and she only did the bare minimum to look decent. The moment she set foot on the base of the stairs, however, Ezra fixed her with a look that stopped her dead in her tracks.

"You too, huh? What were you two even _doing_ yesterday?"

"What are you talking about?"

Ezra stepped away from the bar to get closer and rested her hand on Yulia's forehead. "You're burning up, same as Jun. March right back upstairs and go back to bed. Ninian's making some broth and tea for both of you, neither of you are working today." When Yulia opened her mouth to protest, she shook her head and started to push her back up the stairs. "You both are a damn pain when you're supposed to rest. Now go, you're not doing us any good if it gets worse.

As Yulia took the steps one at a time, her legs aching and screaming for mercy, she spotted a familiar head of silver hair at the top. For once, Jun's hair wasn't tied back in a pony tail, instead incredibly mussed from feverish sleep. "You too, eh?"

"It's your fault," Yulia mumbled, trying to catch her breath at the top of the stairs. "You spoke it into being, getting colds. The gods listen to things like that."

" _Or_ we just won't stay out in the rain so long like that," she replied while blowing her nose noisily into a handkerchief. "You look about as bad as I feel."

"Thanks."

The waspish retort made Jun smile. "You're really cute when you're irritated, like a wet kitten."

"I'll show _you_ cute," Yulia grumbled as she all but kicked her door open and threw articles of clothing off one by one until she was down to her shift. Where they landed, she didn't care as she climbed into bed. "Go away please. I'm going to hibernate now."

"I love you."

A moment of silence passed before a "Love you too" came from the pile of blankets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what this is. It was suggested that they should get colds after all, so here we are.
> 
> I like to think I'm the same as Yulia when I catch a cold. My body really really hates them.


	22. When Pigs Fly

"Why doing this? I not needing help."

Freya sat across from both Ninian and Yulia at a table after closing. Yulia, only there for moral support, sipped at the soup still being forced on her from Ezra while the last vestiges of her cold purged out of her body. A pen, ink, a couple of pencils, and some sheets of paper were arranged neatly on the wood in front of all three of them while Ninian stared at the other Au Ra girl and tapped her foot.

"No, I think you do. We are going to be working on your penmanship."

"I _said,_ I _not_ needing help! Pigs flying first," Freya grumbled.

"Have you seen your handwriting?" Ezra chuckled from the bar. "It's..."

"Bad," Yulia said while setting her bowl down.

"Atrocious," was Ninian's contribution, arms crossed over her chest.

"Completely illegible." Ezra shook her head.

Jun's laugh was stronger than Yulia's, the cold already out of her system. "Guess pigs are flying today after all."

"I just think you haven't had a good teacher, that's all," Ninian assured her with a hand resting on one of Freya's balled up fists. "Handwriting is a skill, and it would help with work and other things, too, I'm sure."

"We can give it a try, right?" Yulia took another steaming bowl from Ezra with a small scowl but a quiet word of thanks. "That's all you need to do is try. Ninian's a great teacher, and her handwriting is so neat."

It took a few minutes before Freya's hands and posture relaxed, and she gave a slow nod. "I can trying, if best."

"Perfect!" Ninian clapped her hands together. "Then pick up the pen first, let's see how you hold it...oh dear."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was told once by her player that Freya's handwriting is so bad, it scared someone to read her letter because he didn't know what it was about or who it was from. She's going to give it her best!
> 
> Grumpy angy Yulia really is like a wet kitten that no one is going to take seriously.


End file.
